Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

"This is the best qualitative methods book I've seen, especially among books aimed at undergraduate audiences." --Michael Irvin Arrington, Indiana State University Qualitative Communication Research Methods, Fourth Edition introduces readers to qualitative research in speech and mass communication. Award-winning scholars and authors Thomas R. Lindlof and Bryan C. Taylor guide readers through every step of the qualitative process, from developing research topics and questions through writing a final report. Readers are given numerous examples of work in the field to illustrate how studies are designed, carried out, written, evaluated, and related to theory. In addition to covering the theories and methods currently used in qualitative communication research, the authors also discuss important trends influencing the future of that research, helping readers make informed judgments about the significance and consequences of recent trends. New to the Fourth Edition: A new chapter titled "The Diversity of Qualitative Research in Communication Subfields" provides readers with a complete guide to the field's distinctive subfields and enables readers to identify the research agenda that best represents their own interests. Two rising subfields - Political Communication and Communication Activism - were added, resulting in thirteen subfields covered. Two major phases of data analysis have been split into separate chapters, enabling readers to concentrate on the initial steps of analysis before moving on to the interpretation phase of analysis. Discussions of important intellectual and institutional trends currently reshaping the landscape of qualitative research, including Materialist Theory, Big Data, and Open-Access publishing, provide readers with cutting-edge knowledge and skills that affect what they study and how they study it. An analysis of new developments in media and technology shows readers how social media networks and other digital platforms are not only topics of research, but also the means for collecting and analyzing data.

Table of contents provided by Syndetics

• Preface (p. xiii)
• Acknowledgments (p. xviii)
• About the Authors (p. xix)
• Chapter 1 Introduction to Qualitative Communication Research (p. 1)
• Rounding the (Paradigm) Bases: A Brief History of Qualitative Communication Research (p. 6)
• Covering New Material(ism), Going Big: Two Trends in Qualitative Communication Research (p. 16)
• Conclusion (p. 21)
• Exercises (p. 23)
• Chapter 2 The Diversity of Qualitative Research in Communication Subfields (p. 25)
• Baker's Dozen: Thirteen Subfields, Thirteen Stories of Qualitative Communication Research (p. 27)
• Applied Communication (p. 27)
• Communication Activism (p. 29)
• Communication Media and Technology Studies (p. 30)
• Group Communication (p. 33)
• Health Communication (p. 33)
• Intercultural Communication (p. 35)
• Interpersonal Communication (p. 36)
• Language and Social Interaction (LSI) (p. 37)
• Organizational Communication (p. 38)
• Performance Studies (p. 40)
• Political Communication (p. 42)
• Professional/Strategic Communication (p. 43)
• Rhetoric (p. 45)
• Conclusion (p. 46)
• Exercises (p. 47)
• Chapter 3 Theoretical Traditions and Qualitative Communication Research (p. 49)
• Introduction: "What Would You Like on Your Sandwich?" (p. 49)
• The Phenomenological Tradition (p. 51)
• The Sociocultural Tradition (p. 55)
• Ethnomethodology (p. 56)
• Symbolic Interactionism (p. 58)
• Ethnography of Communication (p. 60)
• Social Constructionism (p. 62)
• Structuration Theory (p. 64)
• Actor Network Theory (p. 67)
• Critical Theories (p. 69)
• Two Traditions of Critical Theory (p. 71)
• Cultural Studies/Media Audience Studies (p. 76)
• Feminism (p. 79)
• Postcolonialism (p. 81)
• Critical Race Theory (p. 84)
• Queer Theory (p. 86)
• Conclusion (p. 88)
• Exercises (p. 89)
• Chapter 4 Design I: Planning Research Projects (p. 91)
• Introduction (p. 91)
• "My City, My Society, and My Life": Renee's Story (p. 92)
• Sources of Research Ideas (p. 95)
• Personal Interest and Opportunity (p. 95)
• Theory and Research Literature (p. 100)
• Public Problems and Issues (p. 108)
• Funding Opportunities (p. 110)
• Taking Stock of the Idea and Moving On (or Not) (p. 112)
• Evaluating the Scene (p. 114)
• Casing the Scene (p. 115)
• Assessing Feasibility (p. 117)
• Consulting Colleagues, Mentors, and Experts (p. 121)
• Developing Emic and Etic Perspectives (p. 122)
• Conclusion (p. 123)
• Exercises (p. 124)
• Chapter 5 Design II: Implementing Research Projects (p. 125)
• Introduction (p. 125)
• Negotiating Access (p. 125)
• Gatekeepers (p. 126)
• Sponsors (p. 129)
• Telling a Research Story (p. 130)
• Clarifying the Involvement (p. 133)
• Exploratory and Mixed Methods (p. 134)
• Maps and Visualization Exercises (p. 134)
• Still and Video Photography (p. 137)
• Mobile Methods (p. 138)
• Diaries and Other Self-Report Tools (p. 140)
• Surveys (p. 142)
• Briefing Interviews (p. 142)
• Sampling (p. 143)
• Sampling Units (p. 143)
• Sampling Strategies (p. 145)
• Sample Size (p. 151)
• Human Subject Protections (p. 152)
• Informed Consent (p. 154)
• Instruments (p. 159)
• Vulnerable Groups (p. 161)
• Data Security (p. 161)
• Textual Representation (p. 162)
• The Research Proposal (p. 164)
• Title (p. 164)
• Abstract or Executive Summary (p. 165)
• Rationale (p. 165)
• Conceptualization (p. 166)
• Research Questions (p. 167)
• Methodology, Protocol, and Logistics (p. 168)
• Analysis (p. 169)
• Schedule (p. 169)
• Conclusion (p. 170)
• Exercises (p. 170)
• Chapter 6 Producing Data I: Participation, Observation, and Recording Communication (p. 172)
• Introduction: Welcome to Fieldwork (p. 172)
• Ethnography and Participant Observation (p. 174)
• Successful Participant Observation (p. 176)
• Tolerance for Marginality (p. 176)
• Embodiment (p. 178)
• Spontaneous Decision Making (p. 181)
• Being an Ethical Person (p. 182)
• Difference Matters (p. 184)
• Adapting Roles (p. 186)
• Roles Based on Degree of Participation (p. 187)
• Roles Based on Social Function (p. 192)
• Tactical Observing (p. 194)
• Who Are the Actors? (p. 195)
• How Is the Scene Set Up? (p. 196)
• How Do Initial Interactions Occur? (p. 196)
• How Do Actors Claim Attention? (p. 197)
• Where and When Do Actors Interact? (p. 198)
• Which Events Are Significant? (p. 199)
• Writing Fieldnotes (p. 199)
• Scratch Notes and Headnotes (p. 200)
• Fieldnotes (p. 201)
• Journals and Diaries (p. 209)
• Fieldwork and Information and Communication Technology (p. 210)
• Conclusion (p. 216)
• Exercises (p. 217)
• Chapter 7 Producing Data II: Qualitative Interviewing (p. 219)
• Introduction (p. 219)
• Purposes of the Qualitative Interview (p. 221)
• Types of Interviews in Communication Research (p. 225)
• Ethnographic Interviews (p. 225)
• Informant Interviews (p. 227)
• Respondent Interviews (p. 229)
• Narrative Interviews (p. 231)
• Focus Group Interviews (p. 233)
• Interviewing Practices (p. 237)
• The Interview Context (p. 238)
• Developing Rapport (p. 246)
• Listening (p. 251)
• Question Design and Use (p. 252)
• Interview Schedules and Interview Guides (p. 252)
• Nondirective Questions (p. 256)
• Directive Questions (p. 263)
• Sensitive Topics (p. 266)
• Probes (p. 266)
• Loose-Ends Questions (p. 268)
• Transcribing Interviews (p. 269)
• Conclusion (p. 274)
• Exercises (p. 275)
• Chapter 8 Producing Data III: Studying Materiality (p. 276)
• Introduction (p. 276)
• Material Culture (p. 278)
• Material Culture in Qualitative Research (p. 280)
• Studying Material Culture (p. 286)
• Documents (p. 293)
• Documents in Qualitative Research (p. 296)
• Studying Documents (p. 300)
• Conclusion (p. 305)
• Exercises (p. 306)
• Chapter 9 Sensemaking I: Analyzing, Coding, and Managing Data (p. 308)
• Introduction (p. 308)
• Qualitative Data Analysis: An Overview (p. 310)
• In-Process Writing (p. 312)
• Asides and Commentaries (p. 312)
• Memos (p. 314)
• Categories and Codes (p. 315)
• Categories (p. 315)
• Codes (p. 317)
• Coding Narratives (p. 319)
• Grounded Theory (p. 320)
• Coding Examples (p. 325)
• Attractions of Advance (p. 325)
• Invisible Disability in Families (p. 327)
• Leaving the Field (p. 329)
• Tools for Analysis (p. 331)
• Manual Methods (p. 331)
• Computer-Assisted Qualitative Data Analysis Software (CAQDAS) (p. 333)
• Conclusion (p. 338)
• Exercises (p. 339)
• Chapter 10 Sensemaking II: Creating, Evaluating, and Enhancing Interpretations of Data (p. 340)
• Introduction (p. 340)
• Creating Interpretations (p. 342)
• Defining Interpretation (p. 342)
• Using Conceptual Devices in Interpretation (p. 346)
• Exemplars (p. 349)
• Evaluating Interpretations (p. 352)
• Reliability and Validity (p. 352)
• Enhancing Interpretations (p. 358)
• Triangulation, Disjuncture, and Crystallization (p. 358)
• Negative Case Analysis (p. 363)
• Member Validation (p. 364)
• Conclusion (p. 367)
• Exercises (p. 368)
• Chapter 11 Writing, Authoring, and Publishing (p. 370)
• Introduction: Going Public (p. 370)
• The Crisis of Representation (p. 374)
• After the Fall: Reading and Writing Qualitative Research (p. 375)
• Voice (p. 377)
• Narrative Presence (p. 379)
• The Genre-Audience Nexus (p. 383)
• Institutional Contexts of Qualitative Writing (p. 387)
• Academic Politics (p. 387)
• Academic Publishing (p. 390)
• New Media (p. 395)
• The Craft of Qualitative Writing: Three Types of Formats and Their Related Strategies (p. 399)
• Traditional Writing Format (p. 399)
• Innovative Writing Formats (p. 406)
• Multimedia Format (p. 411)
• Some Final Thoughts on Writing (p. 414)
• Exercises (p. 416)
• Epilogue (p. 418)
• References (p. 421)
• Author Index (p. 469)
• Subject Index (p. 479)

Author notes provided by Syndetics

Thomas R. Lindlof is a professor in the School of Journalism and Media at the University of Kentucky. His research and teaching interests focus on the cultural analysis of mediated communication, media audience theory and research, and qualitative research methodology. His research has appeared in numerous scholarly outlets, including Communication Research , Journal of Communication , Journal of Broadcasting & Electronic Media , Journalism Quarterly , Journalism Studies , Social Science Computer Review , and Communication Yearbook . He has served as the editor of the Journal of Broadcasting & Electronic Media . He has written or edited six books, including Qualitative Communication Research Methods (with Bryan C. Taylor) and Hollywood under Siege: Martin Scorsese, the Religious Right, and the Culture Wars . In 2011 he received the Distinguished Scholar Award from the Broadcast Education Association. He currently resides in Austin, Texas.

Bryan C. Taylor is a Professor of Communication, and the Director of the Peace, Conflict and Security Program at the University of Colorado-Boulder. His teaching and research interests include qualitative methods, security studies, organizational communication, and technology studies. He has published in the Annals of the International Communication Association, Communication Research, Critical Studies in Media Communication, Journal of Applied Communication Research, Journal of Broadcasting and Electronic Media, Journal of Contemporary Ethnography, Management Communication Quarterly, Quarterly Journal of Speech, Rhetoric and Public Affairs, Culture and Organization , and elsewhere. He is co-author with Thomas Lindlof of Qualitative Communication Research Methods (Sage) and co-editor of Nuclear Legacies: Communication, Controversy and the U.S. Nuclear Weapons Production Complex (Lexington Press), which received the 2008 Christine Oravec Research Award from the Environmental Communication Division of the National Communication Association.